Our Babymoon

Kyle surprised me a couple of months ago with news that he scheduled a week off from work so we could go on a "babymoon" - one last trip before the baby comes. We already had tentative plans to visit friends in Seattle in May, so we made that our starting point. We spent 9 days and covered Seattle, Vancouver, Whistler, and Orcas Island. It was a great time to relax, explore the area, and just be together.

SEATTLE
First, we flew to Seattle to visit our friends, Chris and Heather, for the weekend. They were great hosts and showed us all around the city.

At Snoqualmie Falls, 30 min. from Seattle.

At the Pike Place Market.

Of course we had to take a picture in front of the original Starbucks. We didn't go in or order anything because the line was out the door.

VANCOUVER
The next stop on our trip was Vancouver, where we spent 2 nights. The first day we went to Stanley Park, which is the second largest park in North America (Central Park is the largest). The next day we endured the constant rain and chilly temperatures and walked around all day to hit the hot spots, including historic Gastown, Chinatown, and Granville Market.

A view of Lion's Gate Bridge from Stanley Park.

The famous old steam clock in Gastown.

48 degrees and rain that never let up!

WHISTLER
The next morning we took the Whistler Mountaineer train to Whistler, Canada (location for the 2010 Winter Olympics). The scenery was breathtaking, and the train would slow down to "Kodak speed" when we approached the highlights of the journey. We spent the afternoon walking around the Whistler village, and we did some hiking too.

A view from the open-air car on the train.

Whistler Village was nice - we'll have to go back to ski there sometime.

SEAPLANE

The next morning we took a 35 minute flight on a seaplane back to Vancouver, which was another neat experience that allowed us to see the beautiful scenery we saw on the train from a different perspective.

We had the plane to ourselves!

Our approach into the Vancouver harbor, where the plane landed.

Before leaving Vancouver, we decided to go to one last tourist attraction - the Capilano Suspension Bridge, which is the oldest tourist attraction in Vancouver (originally built in 1889).

The bridge spans 450 feet across and 230 feet above the Capilano River. The reinforced steel is anchored into 13 tons of concrete on either side of the bridge, and the two cables together can support the weight of two 747s. That sounded plenty safe to us!

ORCAS ISLAND
Our last stop was Orcas Island, off the coast of Washington between Seattle and Vancouver. We took a scenic drive along the coast, then rode the ferry to the island, where we stayed at a lovely Bed and Breakfast. We really enjoyed the island and would have liked more time there.

A view of the charming Inn at Orcas Island.

We got the chance to go on a 3-hr whale watching tour around the islands. Besides a pod of 6-8 Orca Whales (commonly known as Killer Whales), we also saw porpoises and other wildlife. This picture shows one of the Orcas.

On the whale-watching tour, we passed by this island that had a bunch of seals sunbathing on the rocks. We also saw bald eagles, reindeer, and sheep on the same island.

A waterfall we saw on our way up to the top of Mt. Constitution.

The only time Kyle could ever be considered a "tree-hugger". He was really just trying to show the massive size of this Douglas Fir tree.

The view at the peak of Mt. Constitution. Fortunately for us, we didn't have to hike the mountain to see this - we drove all the way to the top.

Congratulations, Kyle!!

We just found out that Kyle passed his Oral Board Exam and is now BOARD CERTIFIED! We are ecstatic and relieved that he has made it to the end of what has been a very long journey for him. No more studying, and no more exams for the next 10 years. Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement to Kyle during his preparation for the exam.

The timing of this great news could not have been better. We are leaving now for a 9 day trip to the northwest and now Kyle can really enjoy the time away.

Red Poppy Festival

Georgetown has been named the Red Poppy Capital of Texas, and to celebrate there is a Red Poppy Festival on the square every spring. Our friends, Chris and April Harless and their two children, Alyssa and Cayden, came to town to visit for the weekend and go to the festival with us.

There was a parade in the morning that was fun, especially for the kids.
Kyle's cousin, Lauren, was recently crowned Miss Georgetown 2008 and rode in the parade.

We also enjoyed watching Lauren perform on stage at the festival. She is so talented!
After dinner, we set up chairs outside and watched the live music by Two Tons of Steel.

Spring has Sprung

Last week, Melanie's mom came to town to be here for the ultrasound and stayed a few extra days to help with our flower beds that desperately needed some attention. It was a lot of work, but the results were well worth it. Now we have a yard we are proud of - thanks, Mom!

Here is the "before" shot, after we dug up all the sad plants that were there.
After several trips to Home Depot and the local nursery, we were ready to begin planting.
Ta-da! Here is the finished product.
A view from the street.
While we focused on the front, Kyle worked hard to stain the fence and mulch the garden in the back.

Ultrasound Results

We had our second ultrasound today and were very pleased to see that everything looks good and the baby is healthy. For all those anxiously waiting to know the gender, we are excited to announce that the baby is a girl!...(we think) At first the doctor wasn't sure if he would be able to determine the sex because her legs were crossed and she wasn't in a good position, but later he checked a couple more times and couldn't find any boy parts.

It was really neat to see the baby from so many angles, and fun to watch her move. She started out very calm, but later moved all over the place. The picture above shows her face.
Here are some fun facts we learned about our baby today:

• She is 9 inches long and weighs 12 ounces, putting her in the 82nd percentile (yikes!)
• She definitely has a healthy appetite, as her abdomen is the largest measurement, but still in the normal range.
• She has long legs and long arms, just like her mommy.

Here is a shot of the baby's legs crossed...how lady-like.

Our baby waved! We first saw her arm and hand stretched out, then her hand bent downward like she way saying hi. This is the first picture in the sequence (her hand is pointing to the left).
This picture shows her hand bent downward as she waved.

Wildseed Farms

After spending the weekend in Junction, we took the scenic way home for a change - a little out of the way, but we made a day of it. We had lunch in Fredericksburg and did some browsing through the shops there, then spent some time at the nearby Wildseed Farms. The bluebonnets had already been harvested, but the poppies and other wildflowers were in full bloom.

In addition to wildflowers, there are is a butterfly exhibit.